Taking Back Sunday have seen it all. Finding success and respect from critics and fans alike both as an indie band and as part of a major label roster, they've seen the industry transitions and pitfalls firsthand since their formation in 1999 and have weathered more storms than a lesser band could've withstood.
Their newest album, New Again, arrived to massive critical acclaim on June 2nd, and many fans consider it to be the band’s best album to date. We caught up with bassist / backing vocalist Matt Rubano to talk about the album, their tour this summer with Weezer & Blink 182, and what it means to be a successful rock band when the heroes are dying (RIP Michael) and industry fatcats are sinking like stones.
CraveOnline: Can we get ten words to describe the tour so far?
Matt Rubano: A tour so great, we tried to extend it indefinitely.
CraveOnline: I just caught a screening for It Might Get Loud - it's a film where Jimmy Page, Jack White and The Edge got together & discussed technique, style, songwriting & life. As a guitar player, it changed my perspective on approaching the instrument in a big way. If you could get together with a couple other musicians and dissect how they operate, who would it be?
Matt Rubano: I have heard about this movie and I’m very curious about it. I love the idea of people like that getting into the specifics about their genius. My list of people would be very long and would include everyone from Motown Bass Legend James Jamerson to Ian Mackaye, Questlove, Herbie Hancock, and Bjork.
CraveOnline: Do you guys do any writing on the road? Can you describe your writing process?
Matt Rubano: We usually have some type of demo recording gear on tour with us be it garage band or a small protools set up. The initial writing for New Again was done on the Projekt Revolution tour in 07 but I think we thrive when we're able to rehearse as a band and then take time away to refine ideas. Our writing process has many different paths - as a group all together, one of us with a nearly complete song, or combinations of us writing together. We're at the point now where we respect and admire each other’s strengths and love to contribute to each other’s ideas to make them into Taking Back Sunday songs.
CraveOnline: I've heard that there was a lot of extra material after the New Again sessions. Specifically, a song called Winter Passing that people have been talking about as "the perfect ending for an 8th grade dance". Are we talking Journey anthems here? Will we see a release for any of those, and when/how?
Matt Rubano: HAHAHAHA...that’s amazing/insulting. I would liken Winter Passing closer to something like a Hall and Oates b-side rather than an 8th grade dance. That’s a song that came about by really erasing all the lines and writing with your mind wide open. Something like that would never have been recorded in the past. While we chose to leave it off of New Again it is a song that we're proud. I’m not sure if there are any plans to release it.
CraveOnline: If you guys had to do a covers album, what are a few songs you'd like to get on there?
Matt Rubano: We've actually talked about doing something like that this year. We would each pick a few covers that would all sum up our influences and try to interpret them as TBS. I think I’m the one the other guys are worried about because I listen to a lot of jazz, r&b and Motown and also was a huge Chili Peppers fan when I was younger. Adam would definitely not like singing Anthony Keidis' lyrics. By that same token, Mark loves Metallica and I don’t have the time to learn any Cliff Burton solos so we'll see how it goes.
CraveOnline: How does a band make money now, given that the record industry is tanking and people are jumping ship left and right?
Matt Rubano: I don’t think there are any bands (except for pop artists) over the last few years that have made their living from record sales. That whole part of the system is broken and going away with no viable substitute in the wings so it is a very interesting/scary time. I think the best thing for bands to do is tour and develop your fanbase that way because that is the real experience. You can’t download a live show, or watch it on youtube and get the same satisfaction.
CraveOnline: Could you see the "do it yourself" model as a viable option for you guys in the future?
Matt Rubano: I like the idea of doing things ourselves and communicating directly with the people that like our band. The Radiohead example is inspiring and shows that you can operate independently of a label of any kind. I feel like that might be the way all artists are headed to some degree. We are standing on the edge of a new era.
CraveOnline: In an ideal world, what would a record company do for a band?
Matt Rubano: How ideal are we talking here? I mean massages and g5 airplanes and stuff sound really good to me but I don’t see that as a possibility. From an industry standpoint, I think the label and the artist are like the last 2 wounded soldiers on the battlefield clinging to each other as they can hear the enemy marching towards them while they console each other, "just hold on man!! I’m not gonna let you go...the chopper will be here any minute...". It’s just a matter of what 'the chopper' is and when it arrives. Ideally, the labels would have been able to foresee all of these changes and prepare for them somehow. It sure makes all those FBI warnings we saw on tapes and cds about illegal duplication and theft seem a little silly.
CraveOnline: There's a world of opportunity out there for a band with their wits about them these days, if they're resourceful. The definition of selling out has changed, as bands have to find new ways to market themselves. How do you guys maintain a level of artistic integrity in the sea of promotional tie-in deals being offered?
Matt Rubano: We approach those kind of unorthodox opportunities with open minds and try to see if there is room in them for us to be ourselves and 'make it our own'. There are loads of things we won’t do if we feel icky or cheesy doing it. But if we can have fun, express ourselves and connect with our fans, that makes it worthwhile. Years ago, we passed on having our tour bus paid for if we let it be wrapped in an ad for Corndogs. Funny now, not funny then.
CraveOnline: Especially given the speed rate of information these days, bands don't often get the chance to set the record straight on some of the more outrageous claims laid against them, whether it's about stealing a song, being general dicks, whatever the case may be. Anything ridiculous you've seen/heard about TBS that you'd like to set straight?
Matt Rubano: There are too many rumors about TBS to even address half of them. That’s one of the drawbacks of the information superhighway is that it gives people an open forum to say whatever they want with no accountability and total anonymity. You shouldn't always believe what you read on the internet, especially when it comes to TBS.
CraveOnline: Touring middle America, where the rock tastes still seem to skew towards suburban white-boy anger rock, do you see a difference in your audiences? Or is it just the same screaming fans at every show to you guys?
Matt Rubano: I think a lot of 'those' kinds of listeners have come around and gotten into TBS even if their initial reaction was not to. After touring for years and years we have become pretty aware of the differences in audiences even though we give them all our best show possible. I was always taught as a musician that scrutinizing the audience is something you don’t do. I feel that our audience has diversified in age and lifestyle over the years and I like seeing that happen.
CraveOnline: Have you heard any of the new Blink 182 material? What do you think of it?
Matt Rubano: I have not heard any new Blink songs yet but maybe I will on the tour this summer.
CraveOnline: You guys are playing Call of Duty World At War with your fans on Xbox Live. How'd that deal come about, and how's it working out?
Matt Rubano: I played WAW against way better players and TBS fans and it was a really good time. We basically talked about the band and how much I sucked at the game.
CraveOnline: What other games are you into? (That Q's for whoever actually plays... I know not everyone in the band does)
Matt Rubano: I prefer games like Star Wars Unleashed and God Of War. I’m also going to get the UFC game as soon as I get home.
CraveOnline: Lastly, if the TBS world ended tomorrow and the following bands asked you to join, who would you say yes to and why? Queens of the Stone Age, The Mars Volta, The Dead Weather or Van Halen? Matt Rubano: Well you've got 2 of my favorite bands, my newest favorite band, and Van Halen. Depending on which line up of Van Halen I'd say yes to all 3 except VH. The Queens have been a huge influence on me and would be a dream come true, Mars Volta is a lot like a band I used to be in and would love to play with them too. The dead weather record is awesome and I pretty much like everything Jack White does. so, YES, YES, YES, and NO.
